Today, Don McLean drove his Chevy to the levee and found it full of money. This is because the veteran songwriter just sold off his original lyrics for "American Pie" for a cool $1.2 million US ($1.5 million CDN).
The lyrics went to an anonymous buyer at a Christie's auction in New York on Tuesday (April 7). There were 18 pages of manuscript on 17 sheets, written in pencil, ink and typescript in 1970 and 1971.
"It was an indescribable photograph of America that I tried to capture in words and music," McClean previously said in the Christie's catalogue. The 69-year-old said that the manuscript would help shed some light on the song's meaning.
"American Pie" was originally released in 1971 on McLean's album of the same name. It topped the charts in a number of countries, including the U.S. and Canada. Madonna's 2000 cover also topped the charts.
By selling for $1.2 million, "America Pie" equals the auction price of John Lennon's lyrics for the Beatles' song "A Day in the Life." That was a record sale back in 2010, although Bob Dylan's lyrics for "Like a Rolling Stone" fetched $2 million last year.
The lyrics went to an anonymous buyer at a Christie's auction in New York on Tuesday (April 7). There were 18 pages of manuscript on 17 sheets, written in pencil, ink and typescript in 1970 and 1971.
"It was an indescribable photograph of America that I tried to capture in words and music," McClean previously said in the Christie's catalogue. The 69-year-old said that the manuscript would help shed some light on the song's meaning.
"American Pie" was originally released in 1971 on McLean's album of the same name. It topped the charts in a number of countries, including the U.S. and Canada. Madonna's 2000 cover also topped the charts.
By selling for $1.2 million, "America Pie" equals the auction price of John Lennon's lyrics for the Beatles' song "A Day in the Life." That was a record sale back in 2010, although Bob Dylan's lyrics for "Like a Rolling Stone" fetched $2 million last year.